


Why Sirius was disowned and Lily dated James Potter

by LittleTurtle95



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, But also in love, Cussing, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, First Dates, First Kiss, Fluff and Angst, Good Regulus Black, Hurt/Comfort, James Potter is a Good Friend, James Potter is an adorable dork, Lily Evans is Done, M/M, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), Protective James Potter, Protective Sirius Black, Remus Lupin Protection Squad, Sirius Black & James Potter Friendship, Sirius Black is a Good Boyfriend, Swearing, The Prank (mentioned), Trust Issues, Walburga Black's A+ Parenting, Walburga can go fuck herself, Whomping Willow incident (mentioned), Young Love, sirius black is in Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-19
Updated: 2019-11-19
Packaged: 2021-02-13 05:27:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,240
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21489079
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LittleTurtle95/pseuds/LittleTurtle95
Summary: When Regulus Black finds the secret diary of his brother left unguarded, he just has to read it. What he finds out leads his mother to kidnap a certain werewolf and teach him how to know his place. Sirius is not amused.Meanwhile, Lily tries to remind herself why did he even accept to go out on a date with Potter in the first place.Their paths collide, a big fight ensues.
Relationships: James Potter/Lily Evans Potter, Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Kudos: 92





	1. Chapter 1

_ **Prongs** _

Lily Evans sat down at a table in a coffee shop in Camden Town. She wore muggle clothes and her wand was carefully hidden in her muggle bag. She even put on lipstick, and, truth be told, that worried her more than a little.

When dickhead Potter asked her to show him some muggle place she knew, only the two of them, he felt her utterly shocked. That was far from his usual annoying tease and sounded quite genuine, for once. She thought about refusing, of course, then she realised two things:

_One_, she really liked the idea, somehow. Potter that last year had grown more mature and well tempered, almost kind, and she hated herself for that but she couldn’t say she didn’t find him obnoxiously attractive.

_Two_, Severus hated him with all his heart and he deserved this. He deserved this after what he said to her the last time they talked.

Severus would have hated it if he knew, and she was sure Potter was going to tell everybody they met during the summer, once the school would have started again. 

Plus, Severus would never ask her to meet in muggle London. This was important. This ment James didn’t care.

_“You filthy mudblood, huh? Let’s see who’s going to be filthy this time around”_ she thought bitterly, biting her lip.

Potter wasn’t so bad, after all. Her fellow prefect, Remus Lupin, was kind and caring and smart and he hanged out with him all the time. He wouldn’t if James really was that bad. 

And when Potter saved Severus from “I can’t tell you what happened”? That was totally a smart move.

And the Quidditch matches were so worth watching when he was playing. He was endearing on a broomstick.

“Enough, Lily. Quit overthinking this. Potter’s an idiot and you’re doing this to unplease Severus, that’s all”

As soon as she heard the door bells ring she hesitantly looked up. She feared he had just shown up in wizard robes, Gryffindor scarf and wand in sight. Why did she agree to meet him there? It was stupid.

_“Because it was so kind of him. He accepts this part of you, unlike-”_

Her eyes finally met his and she noticed with relief she was only half right. She couldn’t stop herself from smiling.

He was wearing his Gryffindor scarf indeed, but it looked like a common red and golden scarf, with the jeans and muggle shirt he was wearing with it.

_“It seems he really put an effort to that, after all”_ she thought.

“Potter” she said instead, trying to sound cold or at least nonchalant, and failing miserably.

“Evans”

His hair were messy as always, but his smile was so different from the one she was used to. He looked shy.

She looked at him, magnetic green eyes fixed on the boy.

“So… you’re doing research for muggle class, right?”

“Uhm, yeah”

“During summer”

He shrugged and flushed slightly. She immediately aknowledged she wanted him to do that more often. 

“And you want me to help you”

“Well, who better than you, right?”

Embarrassing silence weighed between them when the waitress approached them.

“Good morning sir, miss” she smiled politely. “I'm here to take your order”

“Double tall latte, thank you. Lots of sugar” Lily replied, smiling back at the woman. She nodded.

“What about you, boy?”

James widened his eyes, and for a moment he didn’t know what to say. He had been so nervous all day he didn’t even think about what he should have to drink. He didn’t know muggle food in the slightest.

“Err… what she said. But no sugar I guess?”  
The waitress looked at him in confusion, but silently nodded and wento back to the counter.

Lily couldn’t help but snort. James felt his heart sink in his chest.

“Not bad for it to be your first time, Potter! Next time I’ll let you actually choose from the menu!”

“Next- oh, yeah! Of course! Next time! Totally!”

_ **Moony** _

Remus Lupin was sitting down on the ground in the countryside next to his home. His back was leaning on a three, and his fingers were gently stroking the blades of grass.

It had been a couple of days since the last full moon, and he liked sitting down enjoying the cool breeze in the morning, focusing on his breaths and trying to ignore the pain that still haunted his body, his fresh scars bright red under the sun. His eyes were closed and he sighed, feeling a sudden ache in his chest as he did so.

It was always bad in summer, his furry little problem. His father was getting older, and he didn’t have Wormtail, Prongs and Padfoot to keep him company and look after him not to let him hurt himself or anyone else. 

When he heard a loud _crac_, his eyes snapped open.

An house elf was in front of him, in the middle of the field, and he was smiling forcedly at him. He looked tired, and not very kind, as he slowly walked towards him and his smile didn’t reach his eyes.

“Excuse me?” he asked, slowly standing up, leaning to the tree and trying to hold back a whine.

“_Excuse me_? Ha! This one was good” he elf croaked, his big eyes shining.

“May I know who I'm-?” the boy reached his wand with his hand discreetly.

“My name’s Kreacher, sir. I serve the Black family. Master Sirius sent me at your place, he says it’s an emergency. An intimate matter”

“S-sirius? Emergency? Intimate?” Remus asked, worry started to raise in his chest. He never visited the Black manor, he knew Sirius' parents would never let him step inside. If Sirius was asking him to come like this it had to be important. 

He looked hesitantly at the elf. Sirius talked about him a lot, and everything he said wasn’t exactly flattering, to use an euphemism.

“If you could just grab my arm, sir…” Kreacher said, his voice was dry.

Remus tensed and put his wand back in his pocket.

“Oh, right, yes! Of course, yes!”

He stepped closer and in the exact moment his hand brushed with the elf’s arm, his face shifted in a disgusted grimace and the boy heard the _crac_ again.

Everything was dark. Darker then he thought it would be. And he was on the floor.

“Where…? Pads?” he heard nothing but silence. “Sirius?” 

Suddenly, his eyes adjusting to the darkness, he started to see a blurred shadow in front of him. He soon noticed it couldn’t be his friend. It was bigger and it looked like a woman, if his eyes didn’t betray him. He tried to grab his wand, but the shadow was quicker.

“Accio” a woman’s voice said, flatly, and he felt, more than saw, his wand slipping away and fading in the darkness.

“What’s happening?” he asked, his voice weak, terrified. He was wandless and injured due to the full moon. Useless.

“Time to make this… thing know its place, right Kreacher?”

The small chuckle that came in response sent chill to Remus' spine. He thought about standing up but something in him told him it wasn’t a good idea.

“The collar, Kreacher” the voice ordered.  
Something cold and metallic touched his neck and he yelped in surprise and fear. He realised in horror an iron collar was now chained to his neck.

“Who are you? What do you want from me?” Remus asked, he didn’t dare to fight, knowing full well he was disarmed and he didn’t have a chance.

The blurry shadow in front of him moved, and the instant later the sun light filled the room, curtains being opened. He blinked a few times to let his eyes get used to it, and his eyes widened in shock.

The walls were all black, even if he could hardly tell because the wall was covered in motorbike muggle posters. Black was the huge wardrobe next to the window, and black were the sheets on the queen sized canopy bed his collar was chained to. 

The Gryffindor emblem was hanging on the bed, probably fixed with a permanent sticking charm, and on the wardrobe there was a big cage he knew it belonged to Liquorice, the owl of the Black family.

Sirius' Room.

Kreacher was standing in front of him, smiling more earnestly than before. Remus hates it. Behind him, a woman. She was big, well dressed, her head covered in long dark curls. He didn’t have to ask who she was anymore. Her silver eyes told him she was Walburga Black. 

“Well, well, well. Remus John Lupin, am I right?”

The boy gulped.

“I asked you a question” Walburga said, coldly.

“Yes”

The woman stepped closer, a smile on her lips. “I don’t want your filthy hands anywhere near my son ever again. My family is nothing like your kind. If I ever happen to know you’re hanging out with him again I'm coming back for you. I assure you, nobody will miss you once I’ll be finished with you. Freaks like you shouldn’t even attend the same school as normal people. You don’t even need it anyway. Who would even hire someone like you?”

“I don't know what you’re talking about” Remus whispered, hoping it wasn’t what he was thinking. It couldn’t be.

“You know very well what I’m talking about, you hybrid”

That shut him up. He froze, holding his breath. 

She knew. Sirius told her. She knew. After what happened with Snape he looked so wrecked, so genuinely guilty and hurting that Remus could have sweared he wouldn’t have revealed his secret again. But he was wrong. And it destroyed him.

Because, after all the boy did to him, he still was his best friend. And, most importantly, Remus still was helplessly in love with him.

He desperately tried to stand up, he didn’t know what he was going to do, but the fact that Sirius had betrayed him again made him go crazy. He soon discovered he couldn’t. He had to do something, he didn’t care about the wand. The collar on his neck forced him on the floor, the short chain fixed to one of the bed's legs. He wondered how to release himself.

“Where’s my… where’s my wand?” 

“I have it, and I intend to keep it. They should be off limits for the ones of your kind. You’re dangerous”

“I’m sure… I’m sure we can find a solution togheter. There’s no need to-”

“Listen, freak. You’re not going to talk your way past this. I’m going to teach you a lesson. A lesson you won’t forget. And if you even try to think to tell anyone about this, just know it’s your words against mine, and nobody would believe at the words of an hybrid like you”

“What are you-”

“I hope you’ll learn a lot today. And if you’ll behave next year and stay away from my son, I’ll never hurt you again. This can be a one time thing, if you’re smart enough”

She raised her wand, smiling wider. Remus felt like he was going to die.

“Crucio”

Pain suddenly overwhelmed him all at once. For a moment it numbed him, his mind going blank, then it was like every cell in his body screamed in unison. 

He let out a strangled yelp, used to the pain – he was, after all, a werewolf and had to deal with it once a month – managing not to scream.

She frowned. “I’ll make you cry and beg, I promise. Crucio”

The pain increased and he whined loudly, his eyes starting to tear up.

“That’s better” she hummed in content as she looked at the agonizing boy in front of her.

** _Padfoot_ **

Sirius Black just stepped back home after a ride on his flying motorbike. He took off the helmet in a sigh. At least the ride succeeded in making him feel better.

“Crucio” he heard from upstairs, followed by a muffled scream. He bit his lips in frustration. His parents loved to torture the house elves and he hated that, even if he knew he couldn’t stop them. To try would result in him being tortured with them and nothing else.

“I have to get out of this hellhole as soon as possible” he thought, clenching his fists. 

He started to think about moving away the summer between his fourth and fifth year at Hogwarts, and he didn’t do that yet only because he was afraid he would be a burden for the Potters – of course he would go to the Potters, always the Potters – but now he really was reaching a breaking point.

He got in the great living room and threw the helmet in one of the sofas. Regulus, his brother, was reading an old book on the couch. As soon as he saw him, he smirked and yelled “Mooom! He’s back!”

“What the fuck is your problem, Reg?” Sirius asked. 

The other shrugged. “She told me to call her as soon as you came home. She’s not in a good mood today”

“Yeah, I got it from the crucio it just came from upstairs, man” he hissed.

“Sirius!” his mother’s voice came from somewhere on the second floor. “Sirius!”

“What now?!” he groaned, visibly annoyed.  
He heard heavy footsteps coming down the stairs. The door slammed open once again and Walburga looked at him with a frown.

“We have to talk. Now”

“We are already talking, mother” he replied coldly.

“When exactly did I teach you to hang out with hybrids, Sirius?”

Sirius froze for a moment. It couldn’t be what he was thinking. They couldn’t have figured it out.

“H-hybrids?” he asked, his voice suddenly lower and hesitant.

“Don’t you dare look at me like that. I know what your friend, that Lupin, what he is. I know he’s a werewolf”

“What are you-? How-? He's not-” he croaked, his breath fastening and his heart running in his chest.

“You should hide your stuff better next time, brother” he heard Regulus say, throwing his leather diary at him. His heart skipped a beat.

“You, fucking, disgusting, horrid little bastard, I’ll fucking kill you this time!” he yelled, taking his wand and raising it towards his brother. 

Regulus mirrored the gesture with a smirk. He was one year younger than him and still underage, but he knew his mother would successfully cover him if something happened and he had to use magic in the house.

“It doesn’t matter how, or who, or when. I know, and that’s enough. And it has to stop”

“You can’t force my away from my friends” Sirius hissed, stepping back and turning to face his mother. Regulus was certainly less than a threat compared to her.

“You really think so?” the woman cheered.

“I am certain of that, actually” he said, and he felt a wave of hatred and disgust overwhelm him all at once. 

He always managed to bear his mother’s presence before. He learned how to pretend he doesn’t hear the unforgivable curses muttered behind the walls. He learned how to suppress a swear when his father says something ridiculously offensive against muggleborns. He learned how to turn his head when his mother has her bursts of rage and destroys everything that comes to her sight. But this… he couldn’t forgive this.

He knew how much his friend has suffered, he knew how he will keep to, how he could not escape his condition even if he wanted to – and Merlin knows how much he wanted to – and the bare thought that his parents of all people wanted him to suffer more made something in him snap.

“You are _certain, actually_. Well, you should go see your bedroom, then. You’d be surprised” she said, shrugging her shoulders and sighing in content. 

Sirius watched her as she took a wand in her hand and looked at it with a satisfied grin. Everything in Sirius burned. It wasn’t her wand. He could recognise it everywhere. It was…

“How did you have it?” he yelled.

The woman didn’t reply.

“Mom, how did you have it?” 

_“She’s not in a good mood today”_

_“Yeah, I got it from the crucio it just came from upstairs, man”_

He desperately sucked a breath. Suddenly his knees were weak. The room started spinning around him.

“She’s joking. She's joking. It can’t be. She’s joking, it can’t be, it can’t be” 

He wasn’t even aware of the fact he was racing up the stairs like his life depended on it until he heard Regulus yell “Say hi to him for me, brother!” from afar.

_“Merlin, please, let it all be a joke, please, it can’t be him, please”_

He opened the door in a rush and what he saw nearly made him pass out on the spot. “No. No, no, no, no”

His friend was laying on the floor, chained to the bed, a collar thight around his neck. He was lightly whining, eyes closed, shaking probably because of the pain. His forehead was bleeding profusely, ugly cuts on his skin that formed the word _BEAST_.

He struggled to suppress a sob, closing the door behind him and locking it with magic.   
Hearing the sudden noise, Remus opened one eye, seemingly self conscious. He opened his mouth to say something, but it came out as a raspy sound.

Sirius immediately knelt next to him, staring in horror. “Don’t talk, it’s okay, it’s- fuck, it’s going to be okay. I’m so sorry, Merlin, I’m so sorry Moony…” he whispered, as he tried to hold his wand to unlock the collar on his neck.

“Alohomora” he muttered, finally managing to free his friend. 

“Sirius…” the boy moaned, squeezing his eyes and trying to focus on staying awake.

Sirius brushed his fingers on his cheek, feeling his eyes already wet. Remus flinched at the touch.

“Don’t you… fucking… touch me” he croaked, and Sirius snapped his hand back like something burned him.

“How could you tell her? How could you tell her? I got over Snape, I really did, but your mother? What the fuck Sirius, do you hate me that much?” he finally found himself capable to say, everything still aching like hell.

The other boy shook his head furiously. 

“I didn’t! I didn’t tell them Moony, I swear! I would never do it! Please, believe me, I swear! You know I could never do something like that!” he pleaded, tears starting to cross his cheeks. Sirius aknowledged in that moment that he never felt so miserable.  
Remus looked at him in the eyes. He looked hurt, in more than a way, and that made Sirius' heart ache like it never ached before. He let out a sob.

“It’s not my fault. It's not my fault. I swear!”   
Remus frowned for a moment, then sighed. He looked he was having an internal fight Sirius didn’t know anything about.

“Okay” he croaked.

“O- okay?”

“Okay. I trust you” 

The boy blinked, trying to figure out what he just heard. “Do you believe me?”

“Yes. I do” 

Silence passed between them. Tears still down his cheeks, Sirius took all his courage and touched him hesitantly again. This time, Remus didn’t reject him, but he bit his lips not to whine in pain at the touch. Sirius gulped.

“I’m going to try to put you in my bed now, okay?”

“Sirius, Padfoot, wait, it’s not a-OUCH!” 

“Shit, sorry, okay, it can’t work” he cursed, looking at him with his chest on fire. 

“Pads it hurts… fuck, it hurts so bad…” Remus whined softly, closing his eyes, trying to forget the pain. 

Suddenly all the fear, the worry, the guilt he had bottled up in his body turned into rage. The boy wiped his tears off with his sleeve and growled “I’m going to fucking kill her”


	2. Chapter 2

_ **Padfoot** _

Sirius was holding his wand in his shaking hand, trying to heal the other’s injuries. 

His head ached, he felt nauseous and his wand was shivering with him. 

“I can’t. Moons, I can’t. I’m not good enough, it doesn’t work” 

“I told you, it’s okay. It’s more or less like after a full moon. I’m used to it” 

The thought of his friend being used to a pain like this didn’t help his feelings at all. He felt bitterness in his mouth and his stomach twirled inside him. 

Sirius bit is lower lip trying to suffocate the feeling of guilt that was eating him alive. “I heard her, Moony” he whispered, trying not to start crying again. “I heard her using cruciatus against you and I didn’t come” 

“It’s not like you knew it was me, right?” 

“Of course! Of course I didn’t, I would have stopped her somehow! Hell, I would have died trying if I knew it was you, I swear! But the point is I never do something about that. And every time I could try to prevent it, I remember she’s stronger than me, and I get scared. And today my cowardice hurt you” 

Remus snorted. “I would never forgive you if you died doing something so stupid. Besides, I told you: I’m used to it. And, like you said, she’s stronger than you and you couldn’t do anything about it even if you knew. You’re no coward and you know it. Stop with this nonsense please” 

Sirius huffed and did not reply. He looked skeptical about it, so Remus sighed and kept talking, even if his lungs were burning. 

“Listen, Sirius, I’m sorry”   
A pair of silver eyes blinked in confusion and then stared helplessly. “Wh-” 

“I’m sorry I accused you to have told my secret to your parents, I know you would never do that to me. You don’t need to be so hard on yourself” 

“You shouldn’t have forgiven me for what I did last year. You wouldn’t be here if you didn’t. Your life would be so much better without me in it” 

“I could never not forgive you, Pads. And I’m way past that now. We shouldn’t talk about it, I… I made a mistake when I brought that out earlier” 

“I just don’t want you to be hurt anymore” Sirius whispered, his voice breaking on the last word.   
R

shrugged. “I’m always hurt” 

Sirius opened his mouth to give just another heartbroken reply, when his face immediately lit up. He quickly stood up, and raced to the desk on the side of the room. 

“There we go!” he yelled, grabbing a parchment and holding it thightly. He quickly grabbed a feather and looked for the ink. 

“What the hell are you doing?” 

“Sending an owl. I can’t heal you, and I want you safe and sound out of this hellhole as soon as possible. I locked the door with magic, but I can’t trust the bitch anywhere near you. As soon as you’re out of here I’ll fucking rip her in half, I swear. But I have to take care of you first, or do you want that thing on your face forever?” he muttered, sitting down and scribbling something on the parchment. 

“Sirius?” 

“Mmmh?” he answered absent mindedly, nose on the letter he was writing. 

“Pads? Padfoot?” 

The boy sighed and looked at him with his brows up. “What, man? If you want to prevent me from hunting the bitch down you’re was-” 

“What do I have on my face?” 

Sirius froze and his face went immediately paler. He cleared his throat nervously and he shook his head. “Nothing at all. There’s nothing… there’s nothing wrong with your face” 

“Liar. Hand me a mirror, I know you have one, you’re fucking self absorbed” 

“We'll get rid of it before you’ll even have to look at it, it’s not a big deal” 

“Please, don’t make me argue, I'm injured, and hurting and this is humiliating enough even without you being overprotective” 

That did it. How could Sirius even think he could say no to something like that? So he summoned a mirror with his wand and slowly stood up, handing it to Remus carefully, like he could hurt him only giving him something like that. 

The boy took it hesitantly in his hands, like he already knew what sort of things he might expect on finding. But nothing had prepared him to what he saw written on his forehead that day. 

He yelped and the mirror slipped from his fingers to the floor. He felt his eyes tearing up again, and he looked at Sirius with wide, watery eyes. “I… I…” 

“I’ll fucking kill her, I already told you, you… this… she’s a monster, she'll pay, I swear. But first I have to take care of you” he said, again, and again, as he went back to the desk and kept writing. 

“Who are you writing to? Prongs? Pete?” Remus asked as soon as his voice came back. 

“What? No way! If I can’t heal you they both won’t. I need someone that kicks ass in charms” 

“Merlin, you’re not… you’re not calling my father, are you?” 

“Do you really think I’m that idiot?” 

“Can I fucking know who you’re writing to, then? Please” 

Sirius huffed, rolling his eyes as he folded the letter into the envelope. “I'm sending it to Evans” 

“Evans? But you hate her! And she hates you!” 

“Yeah, but she’s good in charms and she adores you. It’s the best choice we have” 

“I don't want you to do that” 

“It’s either that or St Mungo's, Moons”   
The boy flinched at the words and the action made him whine in pain immediately after.

“No!” he blurted out. “I don’t want anyone to see this!” he pleaded, referring to the scar. 

“Then, Evans. We don’t have to tell her why my parents did what they did, we won’t tell her about your furry little problem, it would be fine” 

“But you… you'd hate asking her for help! You can’t stand her, she’s going to mock you forever for that! And you’d have to show her where you live and how your family is and…” 

“I don’t care! I don’t give a fuck, Remus! I don’t care about who Lily is, I don’t care if she hates me, I don’t care if she sees this hellhole, I don’t fucking care!” 

“Why?” 

“Because I love you! And this is all my fault again! And I can’t stand watching you hurt like that one second more!” 

The boy looked at him with his eyes wide, holding his breath, staring deep into his soul. Sirius seemed to acknowledge what he just said, and brought his hands to his mouth in horror.

_ **Prongs** _

Jamest managed to make her laugh. For real. He still couldn’t believe it. 

He looked at her smiling, completely lovestruck, hoping not to look like a complete idiot and probably failing miserably. 

One moment later, something in his face changed, and he frowned, feeling like something cold and wrong just chilled his spine. 

“James? What’s wrong?” 

It was the first time she called him with his first name and he didn’t even notice. “I don’t know…” he whispered hesitantly. 

“Are you feeling sick?” 

“Yes! No! I don’t know… I have a bad feeling, like something's happening…” 

She had her eyes fixed on him. 

“…maybe to the guys. It’s stupid, sorry. I don’t know why I said it” 

“The guys? Like Black?” Her tone stiffened talking about Sirius, and she raised her brows, looking skeptical. 

“Probably, yes. Or maybe Remus. Perhaps Peter? I don’t know, really. It’s just a bad feeling, nothing serious” 

“Do you want us to go already?” 

“What? No! It’s nothing, really” 

“Well, if it really is Black I hope whatever it is it’s giving him a lesson!” she said, chuckling. He thought that was the best thing in the world. 

“They love you so much” she whispered immediately after, shaking her head like she couldn’t believe it. 

“They’re my family. The one I chose. I'd trust each one of them with my life” 

“I'd love to have that, too. Trust, love… I have my friends, yes, there’s Severus, but… 

James tried to dissimulate a grimace hearing the name. “You’re joking, right? People love you! Everybody! Even Filch likes you!” 

She smiled weakly, but her eyes were sad. “It's not like this, and you know it” 

James opened his mouth to say that it was like that, no doubt, and even a complete idiot like Snivellus got how amazing she was, but the girl wasn’t finished. 

“I have a sister, you know, but she hates me. She thinks I’m a freak” 

“You have- I didn’t know it! How old is she? I bet she’s a Slytherin” 

“She’s a- she’s not a witch” Lily whispered, waiting for a snarky comment about his Muggle relatives. 

“Oh well, if she thinks you’re a freak I'm sure she must have some serious problems that have nothing to do with being a muggle” he huffed. 

She looked confused at the words, and looked at him biting his lower lip like she was studying him. James felt his cheeks burning like they never did. 

“Thanks, Potter. You know what? I thought this date was a horrible idea, I don’t even know why I said yes, but I’m definitely not regretting my decision so far” 

_“Date? Did she really said date? Oh Merlin, she said it. Did she notice I want this to be a date? I asked her to help me with Muggle Studies, didn’t I? I didn’t mention dates. Does she want this to be a date, too? If-”_

“Did I say something wrong?” Lily asked, frowning. 

“What? No! Not at all, I was thinking about… about how I’m happy you came, really!” 

As soon he said this, they heard people jumping on their seats and yelping loudly. They turned to look at the reason behind the sudden noise and they both noticed a big, black owl flying towards their table. 

“It's Sirius' owl” James half whispered, half whined, hating his friend for interrupting the moment. 

“Okay, now I definitely regret it. This is muggle London, what the hell are you th-” 

“Erm, excuse me lady, sir. I'll try to evacuate the bird as soon as possible” the waitress said, visibly ashamed. 

“Don’t worry miss, we’re going. Right?” the girl snapped, and James sheepishly nodded. 

“I’m really sorry for the inconvenience, I hope you’ll come back to the cafe, you’ll be welcome. It’s nine pounds” 

When the boy heard the word pounds his heart missed a beat. How come he didn’t think about that? He forgot tho change his wizard money. He felt his cheeks burn more, he should have looked like a tomato, and saw Lily shook his head and hand some money to the woman next to the table. 

“Thank you very much miss, it’s no problem, really” she said, and the woman took the money without saying anything more. 

The owl was resting on Lily’s shoulder like a pirate's parrot and she was visibly annoyed. They walked straight out and found an empty street to read the letter the owl was holding. 

“If that’s a joke Potter I swear to God-” she hissed, her lips were a flat line. James whished he could disappear. 

“It is not! It’s not a joke, Lily, really… ouch!” he yelped, the owl had bitten his finger. He tried to grab the envelope again but he soon noticed he couldn’t. 

Lily groaned loudly and took it quickly herself from the bird's claws. He looked down at the letter and sighed. “You really want to insist this is not a joke?” 

“Please, I have no idea what you’re talking about!” 

She showed him the envelope. On the edge of it, sharply with black ink, there was written 

_Miss Lily Evans_

“Why else would Black send me an owl?!” 

“I don’t know, but I’m going to fucking kill him, I swear!” 

She groaned again and opened the envelope with her brows furrowed. She quickly grabbed the letter and carefully read everything, her expression shifting from annoyance, to confusion, to worry. 

“Remember when you said you had a bad feeling about the guys?” she asked, her voice weak. James nodded, worry starting to fill him like poison. “You were right”

_**Moony**_

“You… you do _what_?” Remus croaked, his eyes wide, he would have thought this was a dream if it wasn’t for the excruciating pain that was firmly grounding him at the moment. 

“You know what? Forget it. Forget it, okay? It’s not… you won’t understand anyway” 

“What if I don’t want to forget it?” 

Sirius flinched at words and looked at him like he was just been hit by a Quidditch bat.

“What do you mean?” he asked, his voice shivering. 

“I mean exactly what I said, Sirius” the boy said, trying to stand up and whining in pain in the process. One instant later Sirius was right next to him, trying to help him to sit on the floor at least. 

“Be careful, you’re too weak” 

“I’m not weak” 

“I didn’t mean-” 

“Why do you?” 

“Why do I what?” 

“Why do you love me? You’re handsome, and cool, and almost everyone in the school looks up to you like you’re some sort of messiah. When you’ll be out of school you’ll find a job, live your life as happy as you can be, free and loved. I have fucking ripped skin, nobody will ever look at me, I don’t have any money I can’t even buy proper clothes, I turn into a monster every month, nobody will give me a job ever and I’m one hundred percent sure I’ll be homeless as soon as my parents will pass away. I'm a freak, everybody who knows me aknowledges this and they make sure to remind me this every so often. Nobody should love me, not like that” he said, his voice teary and struggling more and more with every word. 

Sirius was looking at him like he was worried, angry and ashamed at the same time. His face was flushed and he bit his lower lip so hard Remus feared it was going to bleed. “What you’re saying about yourself, what people say about you, you don’t deserve it. Moony you don’t deserve any of this. Life treated you like shit, people did, and yet here you are, you keep trying and make the best out of people, you’re kind and fair, and you’re clever, you keep studying even if you think it will be useless, you do it because you’re brilliant and you have a sense of duty I admire and I’ll never understand. I failed you, I lost your trust and I deserved it, and then you forgave me because you’re the most wonderful person I ever met. You’re worth ten thousands of this pureblood rich scum and I don’t want you to say you’re a freak anymore. Never. Do you understand? They’re the freaks, they’re absolute monsters and when I saw my mother with your wand and I came here and you were on the floor I thought I was going to die because I can’t do this without you, I’m nothing without you, don’t you ever think otherwise” 

Sirius sighed, he looked like he didn’t want to say something and at the same time he was aching to do it. 

“It's not true. What you said about me. It’s not true” Sirius opened his mouth to reply but he shushed him with a glare. “I didn’t forgive you because I’m kind. I did it because I can’t do this without you, too. It’s been a while since I… I think I…” he swallowed hard and closed his mouth shut so fast he frowned for the pain. 

“You think you what?” Sirius whispered, leaning in, afraid to touch him not to hurt him more. 

Remus didn’t reply, instead he raised his head up trying to suppress the ache in his neck and brushed their lips gently as a response. 

“Fuck” the other cursed under his breath when Remus pulled apart, carefully holding the back of his neck and kissing him properly this time, softly but firmly pressing on his lips. 

They both sighed in the kiss, Remus' sigh quickly turning in a light yelp. 

“Sorry! Shit, I’m sorry, did I hurt you?” 

“Only a little” Remus whispered, almost breathless. 

“Fuck. That was…” 

“Yeah. That was. I really want to do it again when I’m not like this. If that’s okay for you, obviously” 

The words acted like a spell, Sirius immediately stood up and stepped back, his face had changed so quickly from soft to the literal definition of fury, it was scary. “I’m going to kill her for real” he growled, kicking at the chair in front of the desk making it burst on the door. 

“Calm down or they’ll come check on us!” Remus squeaked looking anxiously at the door. 

“So let them come! Let them! Look at what they did to you! I'm not mad I’m fucking crazy!” 

“They outnumber you, they have my wand, your mother is too powerful, they’re going to hurt you, please, don’t do anything stupid” 

“They already hurt me. They can’t do anything worst to me than what they did to you” 

“That’s crazy, Sirius, please, don’t-” 

A loud _crac_ followed by a “Remus, what the hell??” made them turn towards the sound. James Potter and Lily Evans, standing side by side, just apparated in Sirius’ bedroom. 

James crossed the room in an instant and immediately knelt next to his friend.

“Walburga did this to you? I’m going to fucking kill the bitch” James growled. 

Sirius smirked proudly. James' presence always made him feel safer and relieved.

“That’s exactly what I said, mate” he said, then he blinked awkwardly. “What the hell are you doing here? I sent an owl to-” 

Lily cleared his throat. “Sorry. I told him you erm, called me for help and not him but he really insisted to come…” 

“You were togheter! Like, _togheter_ togheter!” Sirius said, looking at them in shock. 

“What? Us? Not at all! Why should we-” James started, but Lily grabbed his arm to shut him up. It worked surprisingly well. 

“Yes, we were together. Is that a problem, Black? I thought there was serious business going on here” 

“Uh, yes! Yes there is” Sirius muttered, as she came closer to look at Remus on the floor. 

“Lily, please, tell me you can make this go away, I don’t want that on my face” he pleaded. Sirius' heart ached terribly at the words. 

“I will. But we’ll have to think about the other injuries first, you’re hurting too much like this. Sirius, James, can you put him on the bed?” 

The two boys nodded and togheter managed to lift him up. The boy half suffocated a scream, his eyes suddenly wet again. 

“Fuck, what happened Moony?” James asked, helping him lay down in bed.   
Remus looked hesitantly at Lily. “It's…” 

“Okay, okay, I got it. Okay” James interrupted him, immediately understanding what he meant. He didn’t want to talk about it in front of someone who didn’t know. 

“My mother is a fucking nightmare, that’s what happened!” Sirius hissed, trying to look away from his friends not to let them see his hurting eyes. 

“It's not that bad. I’m-” 

“Stop!” James said, raising his voice. “If you’re going to say you’re used to it just don’t. It drives me crazy” 

“Thank Merlin, Prongs! I’m trying to make him quit this self deprecating bullshit since I first saw him” 

“Don’t you dare yell at him, you two! He’s injured!” Lily intervened, coming closer. “You know I’m not stupid Remus, right? You’re my partner in most classes, you know I had to figure out why you skip class every month” 

He immediately tensed, his mouth dry, looking at her with wide eyes. “You don’t have to tell anything right now. If you’ll ever want to confirm or deny this, you will when you’ll feel comfortable to. No pressure” she said, smiling. He smiled back. 

“She really is a keeper, Prongs. Be careful with her!” Sirius said with an half smile. Lily rolled her eyes. 

“Trust me Pads, I know” James muttered. 

“Now that you’re here mate…” Sirius said, “we have to take care of my mom, if you know what I mean. We just can’t get over it” 

“I totally agree. We have to make her pay for this” his friend replied enthusiastically. 

“Absolutely not!” Remus almost yelled, making everybody flinch. “She has Regulus and she’s more powerful than the both of you. No way.” 

“I’m sorry Moony, I really can’t stand here and do nothing after what she did” James spoke first, shaking his head. 

“Sirius, please…” Remus whispered, and the boy smiled fondly at him. 

“I’ll be back so fast you’ll barely notice my absence. And then we’ll talk about… that” he said. 

“I’ll take care of him then I’ll go to help” 

“No way, Lily. This has nothing to do with you!” Remus protested. 

“Yeah, no way. It could be dangerous, you don’t know her” James added. 

Lily looked at Remus, her eyes lingering on his pale shivering body and his bleeding scars. “I know enough” 

“Just make him feel better, okay? That’s our priority right now. Then feel free to do whatever you want” Sirius said, firmly. The girl nodded. 

“He's going to be okay with me, trust me” she whispered smoothly, looking back at him.   
Sirius turned to face James, his eyes sparkling with anger and determination, his lips a flat line. “Togheter?” he asked his friend. 

James nodded and smirked. “Togheter”


	3. Chapter 3

_ **Prongs** _

Sirius unlocked the door with a spell and sighed, holding the handle. He looked back for a brief moment. 

“Moony, I…”

“I know. Me too” the boy whispered, smiling weakly at him. The look they shared was so intimate that Lily and James had to look away. 

“I'm sorry our date ended like this” James muttered, too worried to look at the girl next to the bed.

“Don’t worry. We’ll have plenty of them to make up for this” 

He nodded, then looked at his friend on the bed. That was the sort of thing that made him crazy. He felt himself shivering because of the rage that was raising in his body. 

It was with Lily’s emerald eyes on his back that he finally went out of the room.

“Walburga! Where are you? Where are you?” he shouted, anger taking control, Sirius brushing his shaky hand to his arm to calm him down a bit, even if he could tell he was unbelievably mad too.

“Where are you? Tell us if you’re brave enough!” he yelled again. 

A barked laugh revealed she was in the kitchen. Sirius grabbed his wrist and looked at him. “Let’s go make her regret what she did” 

“We’ll avenge him Pads, I promise. And then we’re taking you out from this hellhole. You’re never coming back here again”

“Thank you” Sirius whispered, as they started coming down the stairs.

“Your’re my brother, I'll always have your back, don’t you ever forget this”

They finally made their way to the kitchen, bursting in, their wands already raised. 

The woman was alone, her back leaning over the wall, looking at them with a smirk. “I see the ungrateful prick I raised called some backup. Do you really think two little children and an injured filthy hybrid could scare me?”

“Don't you dare call him that ever again!” Sirius shouted, holding his wand thighter.

“And what do you plan to do for it, exactly?” she asked, her lips still curled up in a confident smile.

“What about if we start with taking back what's never been yours?” James said sharply, stepping closer. “Accio!” 

Remus' wand flew his way across the room, straight to his free hand.

“Nice one, James!” Sirius whispered, amused, casting a spell immediately after.

“Expelliarmus!” 

“Avada Kedavra!” 

A green and a red flash met in the middle of the room, crushing everything in their way. Shattered piece of wood and glass flew everywhere in the room, hitting them.

The green light, bigger and stronger, was slowly proceeding to eat the red one, the one coming from Sirius’ wand. 

“You freak, you would you kill your own son?” James yelled in desperation, the green light getting closer and closer to his friend. 

“He’s not my son anymore” 

Sirius was focused on his wand, his breath quick and his eyes fixed on the two spells battling in the room. James stayed still for a moment, looking at him in horror.

“I can’t let her kill him, I can’t let her kill him, I can’t let her kill him, I can’t…” suddenly he gasped. He just remembered a spell Snivellus used against Sirius to get revenge for The Prank the year before. It nearly got him killed.

“How was it? How was it…” he thought, closing his eyes trying to focus on his memory. “Sectumsempra!” 

A scarlet light flashed from his wand and ended up straight to the woman’s waist. She flew back on the wall, breath living her lungs for a moment. The two spell that were fighting in the room faded silently. James tried to reach Sirius to comfort him, but a blue shield spell suddenly sparkled between them.

“That’s something between Sirius and me. Don’t interfere” she growled, blood covering her witch robes. “Crucio!” she yelled to her son, her face flushed with anger and frustrated.

“Sirius, no!” James screamed, struggling to break the shield spell, but the curse vanished just before it hit the boy it was directed to.

“This has gone too far, mother” Sirius' younger brother snapped, stepping in the room.

“Regulus, don’t force me to-”

“No, now I'm talking and you’re listening. When I gave you Sirius' diary it was to send him back on track, not to kidnap one of my schoolmates, torture him and trying to kill my brother. _This has gone too far_”

“Reg…” Sirius whispered, really seeing his brother for the first time in years.

“I can’t let you hurt him. I just can’t”

“Regulus, I have to ask you to step back” Walburga said, with a cold voice. “I can’t lose another son”

“You have lost no son yet, you dick!” James yelled in frustration. “You’re the one that never tried to act like a mother!”

She stayed surprisingly silent. Three people were probably too much, especially if one of them was Regulus. “We’ll discuss your behaviour later. Stupefy!” she said, and the boy flew out of the room. 

Sirius growled at the sight. “Confringo!” he casted, all his hate flooding out of his wand toward the woman. The spell made the wall shatter down, but the woman remained almost unharmed, having managed to cast a shield spell just in time. Her breathing was fast, she was still bleeding, but she was safe and sound.

“Serpensortia” she hissed, trying to keep James out of her way. The boy looked at the snake that was dangerously approaching him, trying to stop it with a spell, but nothing worked. All he could do was nodge the snake's bites every time it attaked him.

_ **Moony** _

Lily raised his wand over him, making Remus moan in pain loudly. She was sitting on the edge of the bed, looking at him worriedly.

“I'm so sorry, I know this hurts, but I swear this is going to help”

“It’s… it’s okay. I’m so lucky to have you here” he croaked weakly and she smiled at him.

“How couldn’t I? Who’s going to be my partner in potions if someone kills you?” she said softly, still muttering healing spells under her breath.

“Severus, probably”   
She immediately tensed hearing that name. “You’re the only one out of your friends that calls him with his real name. Why?”

Remus sighed, looking away. “Let’s say I don’t exactly agree with what the guys do, sometimes”

“Well, I could tell. I won’t lie to you, sometimes I wondered why you hang out with them so much. Minus aside, he’s not particularly charming but certainly he’s no trouble, he’s not a spoiled brat. Those two, on the other hand…”

“Why do I hang out with them, huh? Well, first things first, they’re downstairs risking to get killed for me. That tells something I guess” he said, looking anxiously at the door. “Second, I can be an asshole just like them sometimes. Most of the times I plan their pranks and they put them in action, so that’s why they’re the ones who get caught”

“Really? Remus I had no idea!” Lily said, her mouth slightly open, while she cleaned one of the scars on his arm. He flinched and she muttered a _sorry_.

“Really. And I have… let’s say I have a condition, okay? I don’t know if that’s what you think you found out, it doesn’t matter now. I’ve this condition I was being tortured for today, a condition that should lead anyone into hating me, and when they found out because we were roomates… when they found out all they did was protect me. I won’t tell what they did to you, but they really put a lot of effort in it and they succeeded. They protected me. They really did. I can’t be more grateful. I love them, and they proved me they love me too”

“Wow” she whispered. “Wow, I used to think… I used to think they were selfish and stupid, and cruel, but it turns out I was wrong. I think I was listening too much to Severus, you know? He was clearly biased. I still can’t approve what they made him go through but… I’ve been with James today and I really get what you’re saying now”

“I’m really glad you gave him a chance, you know. He deserves it. You’re going to find out things about him superficials dont get to see. And you’re no superficial, Lily”

“I’m starting to see it now, I guess”

For the first time since Walburga raised his wand on him, Remus managed to sit still without screaming in pain.

“Thanks. I'm feeling much better now” he said, smiling.

“Glad to hear that. Now let’s think about this ugly thing right there”

“What if it doesn’t go away?” Remus asked scared, his voice suddenly weak and hesitant.

“It will. I swear”

She opened her muggle bag with one hand and held her wand with the other. “Accio dittany!” she said with a clear voice, and one green bottle flew up in her hand.

“I brought it with me because I was with James in muggle London today. Merlin knows what could have happened!”

“I won’t fight you on this” Remus commented, slightly amused.

_“Expelliarmus!”_

_“Avada Kedavra!_”

They heard the screams from downstairs and froze. Lily immediately stood up, holding her breath. “Did you hear that? I’m going to check what’s going on”

“I’m coming too” Remus followed, jumping down of the bed. He flinched a bit because of the pain but his legs didn’t shiver.

“Absolutely not. You’re too weak and you don’t even have wand”

“I’m totally fine. I won’t let them die for me”  
She nodded briefly. “Okay. Let me put this on your forhead and then let’s go. Sit down”

He obliged, sighing with relief. She spread a green liquid on his forehead and some on the rest of his face just in case. “This should work in like, half an hour. Let it rest and remove it only after everything vanished. You’re lucky I got here in time”

“Perfect. Now let’s go” he said, gratefully, looking up at her with a determined expression. 

She suddenly shrugged and stepped back, pointing her raised wand at him. “I’m sorry, Remus. I’m sorry. I can’t let you do this” 

“What?” he yelped, immediately standing up. 

“Sit down! I don’t want to hurt you, but I will if it will keep you safe”

“Lily, please…” 

“Sit. Down” she hissed, and he couldn’t but do exactly what she said.

“I'm sorry” she whispered again, walking straight to the door. “Stay safe” she said, then she went out, closing the door behind her and locking it with a locking spell.

As soon as she disappeared behind the door, Remus groaned loudly, closing his eyes in frustration. He was still hurting a bit, he wasn’t going to deny it, but he had certainly seen worse. He hated when his friends got overprotective over him, they made him feel useless and sick.

_“Sirius, no!”_ James' voice echoed from downstairs. That sent chill to Remus’ spine.

_“Sirius”_ he thought, racing to the door and desperately trying to lower the locked handle. It didn’t work. _“No, no, no, Sirius, no, please” _

He couldn’t let him get hurt, or worse, immediately after their first kiss. This couldn’t happen. Terror started to overwhelm him, he looked around in the desperate attempt to find something useful to open the door.

_“Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. I don’t have my wand. What do I do? I don’t have my wand. What would a muggle do? Think Remus, think”_

He focused on feeling his muscles. They were aching like hell, but he was pretty confident on his legs, and his knees felt stable. He walked to face the bedroom door, closed his eyes and breathed. 

_“Act like a muggle. Muggles do this all the time”_ he thought, trying to avoid the voice inside him that was whispering in his brain _“what do you plan to do when you’ll get downstairs? Even if you’re going to open that door you’ll be useless with the witch”_

He shook his head firmly. He didn’t care about the wand, he would have shielded his friends with his body if needed. He had to. He had to get to Lily, to James, to Sirius. 

_“Sirius. Sirius. Sirius”_ worry made his stomach scream in pain as he kicked the door with all his strength. It didn’t open, but it went close. 

Everything ached. He was sweating. All his muscles were in pain. But he inhaled again, exhaled again, and threw himself straight to the door with all his strength. 

With a loud shrieking noise, the wood crashed out of the hinges and the door fell on the floor. The boy slipped on it and almost fell on the stairs, his legs now slightly shaking. 

He heard an explosion coming from the kitchen and he finally raced downstairs.

_ **Padfoot** _

“Vipera evanesca” 

James, cornered by the snake, helplessly watched it burn and vanish in front of him all of a sudden.

“Lily?”

“Evans?”

The boys asked at the same time, unsurprisingly grateful for the intervention.

“You should be the mudblood” Walburga hissed, looking at Lily in disgust, probably referring to Sirius’ diary. “Did you bring a filthy mudblood in my house, Sirius?”

“Show respect, you absolute monster! She’s worth a thousand people like you!” James snapped, pointing his wand at her, his eyes burning.

“Remus?” Sirius asked apprehensively, glancing at the girl.

“He’s feeling better. I locked him upstairs” she replied reassuringly.

As soon as she finished saying those words, they heard a loud crash coming from upstairs.  
  


James Lily exchanged a confused and worried look, while they heard quick footsteps approaching them. A few seconds later, a limping but quite energic Remus Lupin entered the room with a fierce look on his face.

“How the hell-” Lily whispered, but he interrupted her.

“I couldn’t leave you alone in this” he said firmly joining them. 

Sirius looked at him in awe, his feelings of relief seeing him standing on his own legs and of worry not wanting him on the battlefield were fighting in his chest. Remus looked at him and winked, and Sirius’ heart melted.

“Hey, Moony!” James yelled, throwing him his wand. He took it with a smile on his lips.

“Finally”

Walburga was standing still on the other side of the room, heavy breathing, looking at the people in front of her. If three was too risky, four were certainly out of her league.

“Next time I’m going to kill you. I never do the same mistake twice” she whispered, her eyes fixed on the werewolf. Sirius tensed at the words.

“I’d love to see you try” Remus smiled tentatively.

“How are you?” Sirius asked, stepping closer and brushing his arm with his fingers.

“I’ve been better, but I’ve also been worse” he replied, shrugging. “Lily really rocks with healing spells”

“But I couldn’t stop you” she replied.

“You underestimated me. Never underestimate a marauder” 

“I’ll keep that in mind”

“What do we do with her?” James said suddenly, bringing everybody’s attention back to the woman.

Sirius stepped closer. “Lower your wand”   
Walburga stayed still.

“Lower it!” the boy yelled.

“Expelliarmus!” Lily said, and the witch's wand flew into her hand. 

Walburga groaned in frustration. 

“We’re going to make you regret what you did” James snapped, staring at her with eyes full of rage.

“What should we write on her forhead, Prongs? _I'm a dick_?”  
“I have no idea, Pads. _Mother of the year 1977_?”

Sirius barked out a laugh. “Maybe Moony should choose this time. What do you want to scar the bitch with? I’ll be honoured to do that for you”

“We stopped her” Lily said, coldly. “We should go now. That’s not fair”

“Bullshit!” Sirius replied. “She deserves this!”

“Lily is right” Remus intervened. “You’re better than her. That’s the time to prove it”

James groaned. “Moons, this woman…”

“I know what she did. And I don’t want any of you to do the same. We’re better than this”

“It's different! It’s different, because she started! I can’t… when I first saw you on the floor I thought you were dead. I can’t let her go just like that” Sirius had a broken voice now, the hand he was holding his wand with was slightly shaking. 

“James, let’s go. We’re done here” Lily whispered, entangling the boy's fingers with her own.

The boy finally nodded. “Okay. But Sirius is coming with us. I don’t want him in this place ever again”

They exchanged an hesitant look for a moment. 

“Sirius Orion Black!” Walburga shouted, making them jump a little. “If you go out of that door today, you’re not coming back here ever again”

“I know well” he replied, “and I couldn’t be happier about that”

“Let’s go” Remus whispers in his ear, and he turns to face him with the most earnest smile.

“Give me my wand back, you scum!” she screamed, powerless.

“Absolutely not” Lily cheered, leading James towards the door.

“Good bye, mother” Sirius said, glancing a last look at her before turning his back.   
He looked at Regulus, unconscious on the floor, and flinched. He shook his head and kept walking. His parents would never hurt him, not the way they did with Sirius. But he will always be grateful to him for standing up with him against his mother.

As soon as they were outside, Sirius breathed deeply, enjoying the cool breeze. 

“Sirius” James said, approaching him. “Would you live at my place for the rest of the summer?”   
T

boy smiled with gratitude. “There’s no place that I'd want more to live in right now”

“What about us, Potter? Should we get back to our first date?” Lily asked, squeezing his hand.

“Oh. I don’t know. Maybe we shouldn’t leave them like that…” James muttered, even if he was aching for Lily and getting back to their date.

“We have something to sort out, don’t worry” Sirius replied, then winked. “See you at your place for dinner?” 

“It’s _our_ place now, brother”

“It’s our place. Yeah” Sirius said softly, his cheeks getting warmer.

“You sure you’re okay, Remus?” Lily asked.

“I’m good. This little fucker is going to take care of me, I suppose” he replied, shrugging.

“Oh, I have no doubt about that” she said winking, and the two of them disapparated.

Remus turned to face Sirius, the street was empty and calm. “Thank you” he whispered, smiling at the other boy.

“Thank you for what?” Sirius asked softly, stepping closer and holding Remus’ hips. 

“Thank you for fighting your mother for me”

“I wished I could have done more. I wished you let me hurt her” he hissed.

“I'm glad I didn’t. The Akzaban outfit wouldn’t suit you so well”

“Every outfit suits me, babe” Sirius purred, caressing his forehead. “The scar is gone. You’re clean” he muttered.

“Thanks to Lily. And thanks to you. It was a smart move, sending her an owl I mean”

“Everything for you, you know that”

“Because you love me, huh?” Remus asked, smiling.

“Apparently” Sirius replied teasingly. His face suddenly changed into something darker. “I’m sorry for what happened. I won’t let it happen again, I swear. It was… it was… I feared I lost you”

“But you didn’t. You have me. You can have everything you want from me” 

“And I want everything you’re willing to give me”

“So take it” Remus whispered, and Sirius did.  
He kissed him with all the guilt, the fear, the passion, the love he could manage and Remus responded with almost as fervour. 

They kissed until their lips were red and swollen, until their moans and sighs and growls merged into one spiral of bliss.

They kissed to make up everything that they missed until that moment.

And that was enough.


End file.
